protein farnesyltransferase. (covalent modification/prenylation/mevalonate/tetrapeptides/enzyme inhibition). YUVAL REISS*, SARAH J. STRADLEYt, LILA M.
Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA Vol. 88, pp. 732-736, February 1991 Biochemistry
Sequence requirement for peptide recognition by rat brain p2lras protein farnesyltransferase (covalent modification/prenylation/mevalonate/tetrapeptides/enzyme inhibition)
YUVAL REISS*, SARAH J. STRADLEYt, LILA M. GIERASCHt, MICHAEL S. BROWN*, AND JOSEPH L. GOLDSTEIN* Departments of *Molecular Genetics and tPharmacology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, 5323 Harry Hines Boulevard, Dallas, TX 75235
Contributed by Michael S. Brown, October 30, 1990
a heterodimer (10, 11). The enzyme recognizes sequences as short as four amino acids provided that cysteine is at the fourth position from the COOH terminus. Recognition was demonstrated by the ability ofthese peptides to compete with p21Ha-ras in the protein farnesyltransferase assay. In addition, the enzyme adhered to an affinity column containing a hexapeptide corresponding to the COOH-terminal sequence of p2lKi-msB. A similar enzymatic activity was identified by Schaber et al. (12) in crude extracts of bovine brain. The above findings suggest that the recognition site for the protein farnesyltransferase consists only of cysteine and the three COOH-terminal residues. This conclusion is consistent with the observation that the various classes of farnesylated proteins do not share any sequences except the Cys-A1-A2-X motif. It is also in line with the experiment of Hancock et al. (8), who attached a DNA sequence encoding the COOHterminal four amino acids of p21Haras to the 3' end of a cDNA encoding bacterial protein A. The chimeric protein was prenylated when it was expressed in COS cells, as judged by studies of [3H]mevalonate labeling. Subsequent enzymes in the protein farnesylation pathway may also recognize limited COOH-terminal sequences. Thus, Stephenson and Clarke (13) recently showed that the last enzyme in the pathway, the carboxylmethyltransferase, recognizes short peptides that contain a COOH-terminal farnesylcysteine. In addition to the farnesyl group, which contains 15 carbon atoms, a 20-carbon polyisoprenoid, geranylgeranyl, can also be attached covalently to proteins (14, 15). This modification appears to be more common than farnesylation in animal cells, but the nature of the recognition sequence is not yet understood. The only known examples of geranylgeranylated proteins are the y subunits of guanine nucleotide binding proteins (G proteins) from bovine brain (16) and rat PC12 cells (17), some of which have the COOH-terminal sequence Cys-Ala-Ile-Leu (CAIL) (18, 19). Whether these proteins are modified by the same enzyme that transfers farnesyl groups to other proteins is unknown. To learn more about the peptide recognition site on the protein farnesyltransferase, we have carried out a study of the ability of various tetrapeptides to compete with p21Ha-,s for acceptance of a farnesyl residue. As a framework for these peptides, we have used the COOH terminus of p2lKi-sB, Cys-Val-Ile-Met (CVIM), which was the highest affinity peptide among those studied (10). The results indicate that the Al position of the Cys-Al-A2-X motif will accept a variety of amino acids, but the A2 position is much more strict in its requirement for an uncharged residue. At the X position, methionine, phenylalanine, and serine are strongly
We tested 42 tetrapeptides for their ability to ABSTRACT bind to the rat brain p2l' protein farnesyltransferase as estimated by their ability to compete with p2lH"- in a farnesyltransfer assay. Peptides with the highest affinity had the structure Cys-Al-A2-X, where positions Al and A2 are occupied by aliphatic amino acids and position X is- occupied by a COOHterminal methionine, serine, or phenylalanine. Charged residues reduced affinity slightly at the Al position and much more drastically at the A2 and X positions. Effective inhibitors included tetrapeptides corresponding to the COOH termini of all animal cell proteins known to be farnesylated. In contrast, the tetrapeptide Cys-Ala-Ile-Leu (CARL), which corresponds to the COOH termini of several neural guanine nucleotide binding (G) protein y subunits, did not compete in the farnesyl-transfer assay. Inasmuch as several of these proteins are geranylgeranylated, the data suggest that the two isoprenes (farnesyl and geranylgeranyl) are transferred by different enzymes. A biotinylated heptapeptide corresponding to the COOH terminus of p21K'-1B was farnesylated, suggesting that at least some of the peptides serve as substrates for the transferase. The data are consistent with a model in which a hydrophobic pocket in the protein farnesyltranferase recognizes tetrapeptides through interactions with the cysteine and the last two amino acids. A farnesyl residue is attached in thioether linkage to the COOH-terminal cysteine of a variety of intracellular membrane-associated proteins. The list includes cellular p21lS proteins (1), nuclear lamin B (2), and the 'y subunit of bovine transducin (3). This modification is also found on mating factors secreted by fungi (4, 5). In each case the farnesylated cysteine is initially the fourth residue from the COOH terminus (for review, see ref. 6). Farnesylation is followed by proteolytic removal of the three terminal residues and carboxylmethylation of the cysteine. These reactions render the COOH termini hydrophobic, presumably facilitating the initial attachment of the proteins to cell membranes. In some instances the hydrophobicity is increased by palmitoylation of nearby cysteines. Inspection of the sequences of the known farnesylated proteins has defined a weak consensus sequence for farnesylation that consists of Cys-A1-A2-X, where positions Al and A2 are occupied by aliphatic amino acids and position X is occupied by an undefined amino acid (7, 8). The likely donor of farnesyl residues is farnesyl pyrophosphate (FPP), an intermediate in the synthesis of sterols and polyisoprenes in eukaryotic cells (9). Recently, we have isolated from rat brain an enzyme that transfers a farnesyl group from [3H]FPP to p2lHa-as protein (10, 11). The purified enzyme preparation contains two proteins, each with an apparent molecular mass of about 50 kDa, that appear to form
preferred.
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Abbreviations: DTT, dithiothreitol; FPP, famesyl pyrophosphate; G protein, guanine nucleotide binding protein; CAIL, Cys-Ala-Ile-Leu; CVIM, Cys-Val-Ile-Met; CVFM, Cys-Val-Phe-Met.
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Biochemistry: Reiss et A MATERIALS AND METHODS Peptides. Peptides were prepared by established procedures of solid-phase synthesis (20). Tetrapeptides were synthesized on the Milligen 9050 synthesizer using Fmoc (9-fluorenylmethyloxycarbonyl) chemistry. After deprotection of the last residue, a portion of the resin was used to make the N-acetylmodified version of CVIM. This was done off-line in a solution of acetic anhydride and dimethylformamide at pH 8 (adjusted with diisopropylethylamine). The acetylated and unacetylated peptides were cleaved with 50 ml of trifluoroacetic acid/ phenol, 95:5 (vol/vol), plus approximately 1 ml of ethanedithiol added as a scavenger. The N-octyl-modified version of CVIM was synthesized on an Applied Biosystems model 430A synthesizer using tBoc (t-butoxycarbonyl) chemistry. The octyl group was added in an amino acid cycle using octanoic acid. The peptide was cleaved from the resin at 0C with a 10:1:1 ratio of HF (ml)/resin (g)/anisole (ml). The peptides were purified by high pressure liquid chromatography (HPLC) on a Beckman C18 reverse-phase column (21.1 cm x 15 cm), eluted with a water/acetonitrile gradient containing 0.1% trifluoroacetic acid. Identity was confirmed for all peptides by quantitative amino acid analysis and for the NH2-terminally modified peptides by fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry. Just prior to use, each peptide was dissolved at a concentration of 0.8 mM in 10 mM dithiothreitol (DTT) except for several of the most hydrophobic peptides, which were dissolved at a concentration of 1 mM in dimethyl sulfoxide/10 mM DTT. All dilutions were made in 10 mM DTT in the absence of dimethyl sulfoxide. Biotinylated Lys-Thr-Ser-Cys-Val-Ile-Met (KTSCVIM) was synthesized on an Applied Biosystems model 430A synthesizer. The biotin group was added after removal of the NH2-terminal protecting group before cleavage of the peptide from the resin. Specifically, a 4-fold molar excess of biotin 4-nitrophenyl ester was added to 0.5 g of resin in 75 ml of dimethylformamide at pH 8 and incubated for 5 hr at room temperature. Cleavage, identification, and purification were carried out as described above. To synthesize S-acetoamido-CVIM, purified CVIM was dissolved at a final concentration of 1 mM in 0.1 ml of 0.5 M Tris-Cl, pH 8.0/15 mM DTT. The tube was flushed with nitrogen for 2 min, sealed, and incubated for 2.5 hr at 37°C to reduce the cysteine residue, after which iodoacetamide was added to achieve a final concentration of 35 mM. After incubation for 15 min at 37°C, the reaction was stopped by addition of 10 mM DTT. Complete alkylation of CVIM was confirmed by fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry and HPLC. The molecular mass of the product corresponded to the expected molecular mass of S-acetoamido-CVIM. Assay for Protein Farnesyltransferase. The standard assay involved measuring the amount of [3H]farnesyl transferred from all-trans-[3H]FPP to recombinant human p2lHa-ras as described (10). Each reaction mixture contained the following concentrations of components in a final volume of 25 ,ul: 50 mM Tris Cl (pH 7.5), 50 ,M ZnCI2, 20 mM KCl, 1 mM DTT, 30 or 40 ,uM p21Ha-,s, 15 pmol of [3H]FPP (12,00023,000 dpm/pmol), 4-7.5 /kg of partially purified protein farnesyltransferase (Mono Q fraction, ref. 10), and the indicated concentration of competitor peptide added in 3 ,ul of 10 mM DTT. After incubation for 30-60 min at 37°C, the amount of [3H]farnesyl present in trichloroacetic acid-precipitable p21Ha-,s was measured by a filter assay as described (10). A blank value (
